Russian-Jewish
immigrants to the United
States and their families encounter serious
economic, political, and cultural challenges. On the one hand they are eager to
integrate into the American Jewish community, but on the other they want to maintain
a degree of separation, a comfort zone enabling them to feel socially,
culturally, religiously, politically, linguistically, and even economically distinctive. AJC is well positioned to provide
Russian-speaking Jews with an attractive organizational home that helps them
express their values and address their concerns.

Russian-Jewish Immigration to the United States

The exact number
of Russian-speaking Jews living in this country is unknown, but is generally estimated
at about 700,000.[2] The 2002–03 population survey conducted by the
UJA-Federation of New York found that 19
percent of Jews in the five boroughs of New
York City (roughly 220,000 people) were Russian speakers.[3] However many indicators suggest that the
figure may be significantly higher,[4] as
many as 300,000. Nationwide, the number of
Russian-speaking Jews probably exceeds that of Russian and Ukrainian Jews
combined. New York
today has more Russian Jews than any other city in the world.

Russian-speaking
Jews came to this country in two major waves, about 30% entering before 1990,
and the other 70% after. They settled in enclaves of major metro areas, either
in the inner cities (South Brooklyn, NY; North East Philadelphia; Brookline, MA) or in affluent
suburbs (Northern New Jersey, Newton, MA, Buck County, PA, Palo Alto, CA).
While not constituting a homogeneous group, Russian-speaking Jews are
nevertheless products of the same “civilization.” They share similar experiences
of life in the Soviet Union as well as similar
values. Their experience in the U.S.
does not vary much from city to city.

Soviet hostility toward Jews followed by the collapse of
the Soviet Union in 1991 led to millions
of Soviet Jews leaving to seek refuge elsewhere. Over a million of them settled in Israel, hundreds of thousands emigrated to European
countries—primarily Germany—and
others landed in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

The Russian-speaking
Jewish community in the U.S.
got its start in the early 1970s, when the Soviet government, seeking détente
with the West, began to allow some Jews to leave for Israel. The regime claimed it was
permitting this for the humanitarian reason of family reunification. Thus, many Soviet Jews got out of the country
after receiving invitations from real or fictional relatives in Israel.
Some on the way to Israel “dropped
out” in Vienna and applied to come to the United States
as political refugees. The Israeli government strongly objected and chastised
those who decided to go to the West, but the leadership of the American Jewish
community upheld the principle of freedom of choice, and by the late 1970s as many
Soviet Jews were coming to the U.S as to Israel.[5]

In 1974, the U.S.
Congress passed the Jackson-Vanik Amendment, which tied the economic benefit of
most-favored-nation status for the Soviet Union
to that country’s allowing its citizens, Jews and non-Jews, to emigrate. The Soviet regime reacted defensively, slipping
back into full-blown repression and cutting down sharply on Jewish
emigration. Exit visa requests were
denied and many Jews who had already applied for them lost their jobs, creating
the category of “refuseniks,” people refused the right to leave the country. Nevertheless, the outflow did not stop
entirely, as some did get permission to leave, especially after the 1975
Helsinki Accord signed by 35 European nations including the U.S., Canada, and
the Soviet Union. About a third of the Russian-speaking Jewish population now
living in America
arrived during the 1970s.[6]

After the Soviet
invasion of Afghanistan at the end of 1979, the subsequent U.S. boycott of the
Moscow Olympics of 1980, and the return to an overtly hostile U.S.- Soviet
relationship, Soviet authorities clamped down harshly on exit visas and
emigration dried up for nearly a decade. It began slowly returning in 1987 during
Gorbachev’s “perestroika” and gradually increased, especially after Gorbachev
strengthened contacts with President Reagan and European leaders, who pushed
him to liberalize Soviet emigration policy.

In 1989, the U.S.
Congress passed the Lautenberg Amendment classifying Soviet Jews and certain other
religious communities as persecuted groups, automatically qualifying them for refugee
status. Over the next decade, a huge
wave of new Russian-Jewish immigrants headed to American shores. This wave, which sometimes brought as many as
25,000 new émigrés a year to New York,[7] began
to recede in the early 2000s. In the
aftermath of 9/11, when the United
States toughened its immigration policy, the
number of Jewish refugees from the FSU dropped even more sharply.

Socio-Economic Integration

The
Russian-speaking Jewish immigrants of the 1970s and early 1980s integrated
relatively quickly into American society because about 80% of them were refugees
or relatives of refugees, and hence entered the U.S.
with a politicized identity, stigmatized in the USSR
and psychologically prepared for permanent settlement in the U.S. no matter
what the hardships. Some started Americanizing themselves while still in the USSR by learning English, preparing
professionally, and accumulating knowledge about America, a process sociologist Robert
Merton has called “anticipatory socialization.”

The
immigrants of the 1990s were different. They
left home primarily because of economic collapse, fear of possible pogroms, and
disintegration of the state. This wave was less politicized and, ironically,
less prepared for integration into American life. It included large numbers of non-Western Jews,
such as Bukharian, Georgian and Mountain Jews.[8] Over the last few years, a noticeable number
of Russian-speaking Jews who initially went to Israel
have chosen “second emigration” to the U.S.

“Russian” Jews
retain strong links with loved ones in Israel. Sixty-one percent of them have relatives in Israel and
another 20% have more distant relatives or close friends there.[9] This
reality has had a large political impact, tying American Russian-speaking Jews
closely to Israel
emotionally and triggering an outburst of pro-Israel activism. Russian-speaking
Jews are also well connected with those who went to other Diaspora countries,
such as Canada, Germany, and Australia.[10] These
close connections made them a global community.

Russian-speaking
Jews in the United States
place great value on education, just as they did in the USSR. Virtually all young Russian Jews who graduate
from high school go to college.[11]
Indeed, Russian-speaking immigrants comprise the best-educated group in U.S.
immigration history[12].

Based on data from
Philadelphia and New York,
it appears that a noticeable portion of the Russian-speaking Jewish population
has made its way to the middle class. In both cities, more than 40% of
households in which at least one member is employed report an annual income of $50,000
or more.

Despite the challenges facing many
elderly Russian-speaking Jews, social service professionals in the community see
little evidence of hunger or homelessness among them. It is rare to hear “Russian” Jews speaking negatively
of the United States;
almost uniformly, they bless the country for allowing them to live as free and
proud Jews. Across the board, there is a
high level of overall satisfaction: 64% of those who have lived in America
for nine years or more say they are completely or mostly satisfied with life
here.[17]

Challenges of Integration

From the very beginning
of the migration of Soviet Jews some 40 years ago, there has been a mutual clash
of perceptions between them and the American-born Jewish community. American
Jews, including many communal professionals, assumed that the immigrants would
have a strong desire to participate actively in organized Jewish life in their
new land, and they hoped that the newcomers would bring "fresh blood"
to American Jewish life.

But the Russian-speaking
Jews, while paying tribute to the American Jewish community for helping them,
expected more assistance from their hosts, and resented being lectured and
patronized. Used to dependence upon the
government in the FSU, many were stunned by the “tough love” attitude sometimes
shown by the American Jewish organizational world, which helped support the
newly arrived for several months and then expected them to stand on their
own. The absence of a truly welcoming and
partnering attitude led the Russians to wonder if they would be allowed to join
the American Jewish community while retaining some significant elements of their
own culture, and whether the Americans were ready to hear the lessons the
newcomers had learned as Jews in the Soviet Union.
There was a suspicion that the Jewish
community perceived them as second-class Jews, useful only as “a source of new
revenues for the established bureaucracies.”[18]

Stereotypes on
both sides generated multiple myths that even today flow through the American
Jewish mainstream about Russian Jews, and in the Russian-speaking community
about American Jews.

Poverty, laziness,
dependency, and involvement with organized crime are only some of the stigmas
circulating about “the Russians.”[19] Oral Reports and publications indicate that some
American Jews depict Russian Jews as not “Jewish enough” who not only are
ignorant of and indifferent to Jewish religion and tradition, but also are
insensitive to American Jewish culture[20]. Yet others consider Russian-speaking Jews to
be right wing[21],
narrow-minded extremists in their political and social views. Some blame American Russian-speaking Jews for
supporting the right-wing Israeli political party “Israel Beiteinu” and its
leader, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman[22].

Russian Jews, in
turn, often generalize that American Jews are interested only in money and
self-promotion, and that elements of high culture such as literature, poetry, dance,
music, and theater are beyond their narrow minds. It is sometimes suggested that American Jews
are rich, spoiled, uneducated, and hypocritical, and on top of that “extremely liberal
leftists,” almost communists—the ultimate sin.

This
gap reflects the divergent cultures these two parts of the Jewish people have
internalized over the past century. The
organized American Jewish community has developed under the influence of Protestant
culture, which emphasizes communal
religious practice—connection to a house of worship and denomination—individual
responsibility, rule of law, voluntarism, and charity, with little emphasis on ideology
or theology. The Reform and Conservative movements in American Judaism are especially
good examples of adaptation to American liberal Protestant culture. American
Jews are close to liberal and moderate Protestants on many socioeconomic and
sociocultural issues.[23]

The
values and lifestyle of Russian-speaking Jews, in contrast, are deeply rooted
in two formative cultures: one is Russian and heavily influenced by reaction to
the Russian Orthodox religion, and the other is Soviet communism, with its
emphasis on atheism, political ideology, eschatology and reliance on the
state. To Russian Jews, faith is something
very private and intimate, having more to do with personal feelings and
thoughts rather than public actions. Explicit
forms of personal religious practice or communal identification, such as wearing
a kippah, and a Jewish communal life separate from the general population is
unfamiliar to them and difficult to accept. Being Jewish, for them, is less
about action and community and more about relaxing with friends and talking
about God or about Israel’s
flaws and successes.

For most Russian-speaking
Jews, Jewish identity is not a matter of choice or religious practice, but
rather a sociological fact, prescribed at birth and known to the individual and
his or her family, not to be casually announced to everyone who wants to know.[24] A Russian Jew may know he or she is Jewish,
may be proud of it, may feel, think or even believe as a Jew, but rarely will
act as one.

Surveys indicate
that Russian-speaking Jews identify themselves today largely by caring about
the State of Israel (88 percent agree
that this is “very important” for being a Jew), and through connection with Jewish history and culture. Russian Jews are less likely than American Jews
to identify Jewishly due to hostility, or on the basis of separation from other
nations.[25] Concerned about and experienced of
anti-Semitism, they nevertheless tend to identify themselves as Jews through “positive”
indicators, such as deep Jewish history and the State of Israel.

Religious Life

The attitude of Russian Jews toward
organized religion is one of “detached
affiliation.” This means establishing and maintaining a
comfortable distance from the synagogue but participating in some of its events
and services. Only 6% of the
Russian-speaking Jewish population
considers religion “very important,” and another 35% “somewhat important”,[26]
yet many, including very secular people, attend the Yom Kippur service to
say Yizkor, the prayer for the dead, thus commemorating in a very Jewish way parents,
grandparents and other loved ones who perished in the Holocaust, in Stalin’s
GULAG, or later. Such Russian-speaking Jews also come to the synagogue for lifecycle
events like Brit Milah (ritual circumcision), bar/bat mitzvah, weddings, or
funerals.

Some segments of
Orthodox Judaism, especially Habad and, to the lesser extend, Modern Orthodoxy,
have been more successful in reaching out to the Russian-speaking community
than the Reform and Conservative movements. This is because the
Russian-speakers tend to see Orthodox rabbis and synagogues as “the real
thing,” and to consider the non-Orthodox alternatives as inauthentic. Habad and Modern Orthodoxy are also perceived
by Russian-speaking Jews as more pro-Israel than the other Jewish denominations
and therefore are viewed as more attractive.

Many
Russian-speaking Jewish families are seriously concerned about their children’s
Jewish education. They despise the public school system (at least in New York City) for its low
level of math and science education, poor discipline, crime, and drug proliferation
in some schools. On the other hand, they
are reluctant to send their children to Orthodox yeshivas where, in their view,
there is too much religion and too little science. Many also fear that children
will become seriously observant and challenge their own comfortable lifestyle
of detached affiliation. Also, many families that would be interested in
sending their children to yeshivas or Jewish day schools cannot afford the tuition. Some leaders believe this problem will eventually
be solved through government vouchers; while others advocate building an
inexpensive Jewish school system that provides basic Jewish literacy and strong
secular education. Still others think that every Jewish child should be
entitled to a certain number of Jewish school years, paid for by the Jewish community.

Intermarriage

About 24
percent of the marriages of Russian-speaking Jews in New York are to non-Jewish partners.[27] Interestingly, the intermarriage rate of
those under 35 years of age is lower than in the middle generation (35–54 years
old), which itself is higher than in the older generation (55 years and up).
This phenomenon may be linked to a “return to the Russian roots” movement in
recent years on the part of some young adults, and with it a preference for a
marital partner who is a fellow member of the Russian-speaking Jewish
community. Many of these people grew up in Russian enclaves in New York, Boston, or Los Angeles, attended top
universities, and staked out promising careers. Having largely put aside their
Russian-Jewish identities to achieve success, many are “coming home.”[28]

Many
of the intermarried families maintain a “dual religious loyalty.” The entire
family will happily celebrate Purim and Hanukah, party on Christmas and New
Year, and dress up on Halloween.

Political Views

The widespread perception
that Russian-speaking Jews are mainly conservative and vote Republican is
somewhat misleading. On some issues like
abortion—the only available form of contraception that was available in the
Soviet Union—they are liberal, 66% thinking that abortion should be
legal under any circumstances.[29] Also, over one-third of the
Russian-speakers consider themselves political independents, and in some
elections, especially on a local level, they often vote Democratic. It is true
that the community, then small, went strongly Republican during the 1980s, both
out of affection for Ronald Reagan, who called the despised Soviet Union an
“evil empire,” and because many staunchly anti-communist Russians suspected liberals
of being soft on the Soviet Union. But
the Russian-speakers moved toward the center-left during the 1990s, many voting
for Bill Clinton in 1996 and Al Gore (with Joseph Lieberman as vice
presidential candidate) in 2000, probably because anti-communism seemed less
relevant after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Yet in 2004, the Russian-speakers turned out even more strongly for
George W. Bush. According to an exit poll,
77% of Russian-speaking Jews in New
York voted for the Republican incumbent over his
Democratic challenger John Kerry despite the fact that 55% of Russian Jews were
registered Democrats and only 25% registered Republicans.[33] This reflected a perception of Bush as the
bearer of Reagan’s legacy—his strong support for Israel and his muscular position
against terrorism—as well, perhaps, as approval of Bush’s tax policy that gave
Russian families, many of whom depend on earned income, a few more hundred
dollars to spend. A similar pattern emerged
in the 2008 presidential election when Russian-speakers preferred McCain to
Obama. The latest evidence of a decided
Republican tilt came on September 13, 2011, in the special election for the 9th
Congressional District in New York
(Brooklyn-Queens), where the seat vacated by Anthony Weiner was contested by
Democrat David Weprin and Republican Bob Turner. In this election, Turner won the seat that
Democrats had held for almost a century by getting 54% of the vote against Weprin’s
46%. An exit poll of 340 Russian voters
(77% of them self-identified Jews) outside two voting sites in Queens and three
in Brooklyn showed an overwhelming Russian
vote for Turner.

Registered as: Voted
for: Turner Weprin Other

Republican 34 Republicans 98% 2% 0 100%

Democrat 39 Democrats 86% 14% 0 100%

Independent 25 Independents 85% 8% 7% 100%

Other 2

________________

100%

The two main issues were Israel and the economy. The Russian-speakers
believed that Turner, a Catholic, would be better for Israel than Weprin, a Jew. In addition, they felt that electing Turner
would send a strong message to Obama to change his attitude toward Israel. As for the economy, this group of voters thought
the Republicans would handle the situation better than the Democrats.

For a great
majority of Russian-speakers, global anti-Semitism remains a grave
concern. They deem it a very serious
problem in the Muslim world (85 percent) and in Europe (83 percent), but
considerably less so in America
or on its college campuses. Among the
various ethnic and religious groups, they see Muslims as having the most
stridently anti-Semitic views, while believing that Evangelical Protestants are
the least anti-Semitic.[34]

The attitudes of Russian-speaking Jews tend to differ from those of other
American Jews with respect to Israeli politics and the situation in the Middle East. Eighty-three percent agree with the
statement that the goal of the Arabs is the destruction of Israel, not merely the return of
occupied territories, while 51% oppose and only 26% favor the establishment of
a Palestinian state. Asked whether they
would support allowing Palestinian sovereignty in any part of Jerusalem within the framework of a permanent
peace settlement, 80% say no and only 7% yes. [35] By comparison, in 2004, 57 percent of American
Jews favored the establishment of a Palestinian state[36] It
is important to note that regardless of their own personal views, the Russian-speakers
respect the decisions made by the duly elected government of Israel, 79% saying
they would support these decisions.

AJC and Russian Jews: A Natural Strategic Alliance.

AJC
is probably the most attractive major American Jewish organization for Russian-speaking
Jews for the following reasons:

1) AJC has been involved with Russian Jews for over
a century. The Kishinev pogrom (1903) and the consecutive wave of pogroms in
tsarist Russia created the impetus for the creation of AJC in 1906, and its
original mission was to protect Russian Jews from growing anti-Semitism. And as
David Harris emphasizes, there is a consistent line connecting AJC beginnings
with its concern a century later for “the situation of Jews in the former
Soviet Union and the welfare of the Russian Jewish community in the U.S.”[37]

2)
Russian Jews like AJC’s firm and consistent position in defense of Israel’s
right to exist, its security and wellbeing. Similarly, AJC’s fight against
anti-Semitism and its historic role on behalf of Soviet Jewry is well known and
highly appreciated in the Russian- Jewish community. Overall, AJC’s global Jewish advocacy resonates
with the Russian-speakers.

3)
Russian Jews understand the value of AJC’s sophisticated diplomacy, especially as
carried out with the countries of the FSU.

4)
Within the spectrum of American Jewish organizations, AJC is considered
moderate, centrist, and non-partisan, although there are some Russian-speakers
who still view it as too liberal.

5) AJC is the
organization that first welcomed Russian Jews and cooperated with them as equal
partners. When, in 1996, a group of Russian activists seeking partnership visited
a dozen American Jewish groups, they received mostly cold and patronized
treatment until coming to AJC, where they found a home where they are welcomed and
appreciated. This positive encounter led
to creation of AJC’s pioneering Russian Jewish leadership program. More than 300 potential leaders in New York, Chicago, and Boston have graduated
from the program, and most now lead Russian-Jewish grassroots and actively
participate in AJC and other Jewish organizations. Two ended up on the AJC Board of Governors,
three now serve on the AJC NY chapter board, two on the Boston
board, one on the Westchester board, and one on the Chicago board.

6)
As a highly educated group, Russian Jews are impressed by the intellectual
level and professionalism of AJC publications, research, staff, and lay
leadership. The professional head of AJC, Executive Director David Harris, is widely
recognized as AJC face.

Not
only is AJC important for the Russian-speaking Jews, but the latter are also
strategically vital for AJC and its mission.

1)
Russian-speaking Jews, as noted above, today form a global Jewish group—perhaps
the only such collective—and therefore are strategically important to AJC as a
global Jewish agency.

2)
Numbers are also important; Russian Jews comprise about 20 percent of the
entire Jewish community in New York, Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia and other
metropolitan areas. At about the same
proportion, they are an integral part of Israel’s Jewish population. They
also constitute 90% of the Jewish population in Germany.

3)
Naturally, Russian Jews play a significant role in AJC diplomatic efforts,
especially with Russia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan,
the Baltic States and other countries of the
FSU. These efforts are especially important
now, as AJC conducts intensive diplomatic advocacy related to the Iranian
nuclear threat.

4)
The American Jewish community and AJC in particular would benefit from learning
more about the Russian Jewish experience of life under totalitarianism, their
fight for freedom in the Soviet Union, their understanding of Israel and its struggle, and their experience as
immigrants to the U.S. The lessons learned could provide AJC with
fresh insight into a number of domestic and international issues.

5)
AJC would benefit from engaging Russian Jews since they possess a sense of
activism, enthusiasm and passion, especially in relation to the support of Israel.

Conclusions

1.
Over the past 10–15 years, Russian Jews integrated well economically and
socially into American life. They are
rapidly entering the middle class. They declare themselves generally satisfied
with life in America. With a very high educational level, a solid
economic future for Russian-speaking Jews in America seems guaranteed.

2.
Nevertheless, there are many challenges facing them as they seek to integrate
into the mainstream American Jewish community: mutual misperceptions and misunderstanding;
lack of trust felt toward American Jewish organizations, institutions,
traditions, and values; “detached affiliation” with organized religion and the
organized community generally; and serious political differences on Israel and
on some domestic and international issues.

3.
Will Russian Jews eventually assimilate fully into mainstream American culture
and/or American Jewry? The ‘Russian revival’ among the young shows that the
process of Americanization will likely go hand in hand with preserving Russian
identity within a Jewish context. The
model for the integration of Russian-speaking Jews is neither a melting pot nor
multiculturalism. It is rather a relatively new combination of quick and full
Americanization by younger people (in terms of language, culture, and
socioeconomic integration) that at the same time maintains a cocktail of
identities that include Jewish pride and Jewish identification, with Israel at
the top of the agenda, plus Russian linguistic, cultural and behavioral patterns. The second and possibly the third generation
of these Jews will choose to continue being American, Jewish, and Russian
simultaneously and seek to enhance each of the components of this complex
identity.

4.
If American Jewry is to thrive in the coming decades, it desperately needs
Russian-speaking Jews as part of the mix. After all, since they taught their
American counterparts a great deal about Jewish pride during the era of the
Soviet Jewry movement, there is every reason to believe that today they have as
much to teach American-born Jews as to learn from them. The ongoing interaction will be greatly
enriching for both sides.

[1] This paper is prepared for AJC Commission on
Contemporary Jewish Life. It uses data
collected in various AJC-sponsored studies from 2000-2011 and materials from the presentation at the Conference on
the Contemporary Russian-Speaking Jewish Diaspora, Davis Center Harvard
University, November 13-15, 2011.

[6] “Election 2000: Russian Jews as Voters in New York City,” Study
Conducted for The American Jewish Committee by Research Institute for New
Americans (RINA), (New York:
The American Jewish Committee, 2001).

[7] S. Ain, “Ex-Soviet Jews Now Largest Group Settling in
City,” The Jewish Week, July-August
1993; Steven Gold, “Soviet Jews in the United States”, American Jewish Yearbook 94, (New York:
The American Jewish Committee, 1994).

[8] Strizhevskaya, N. and Knopp, A. “Bukharians in New York. A Review of
the Community’s Unique Jewish Life and Infrastructure,”Commission on Jewish
Identity and Renewal, UJA Federation of New York, 2 September 2004; Mountain
Jews: Customs and Daily Life in the Caucasus, The Israel Museum (Jerusalem), 2002.

[12] “Election 2000: Russian Jews as Voters in New York City,” Study
Conducted for The American Jewish Committee by Research Institute for New
Americans (RINA), (New York:
The American Jewish Committee, 2001).

[13]“New American Jewish Population
Study of Greater Philadelphia.
Portrait of Russian Jewish Immigrants in Greater Philadelphia,” Study conducted
for the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia by Research Institute for New
Americans (RINA), 2001.

[17] “Election
2000: Russian Jews as Voters in New York City,” Study Conducted for The American Jewish
Committee by Research Institute for New Americans (RINA), (New York: The American
Jewish Committee, 2001), p.23.

[19] Here
are some quotes from the City-Data.com
forum: “Mixed
with the people who the USSR
knew where Jewish, were those who stated they were Jewish, those who the USSR wanted to get rid of and also emptied a few
prisons into the US.
Since the US
had no paperwork of who was who they were treated as Jews. They received more
and better benefits than those on US residents on welfare/food stamps. The US used them to
show prosperity (propaganda) of these people to the world. Also mixed with them
were spies and mobsters - but who knew”.

Another
blogger (2010): “The area is mostly inhabited by ex-Soviet nationals…
Strippers, hobos, hookers, drunks, druggies, transients, crooks - you name it
!”

2011 post: “Does anyone have real expertise on the
Russian Mafia? They are extremely clandestine so solid info is hard to come by
but I'd be interested in any anecdotal or more documented knowledge of their
workings, organization, specific rackets, etc.”

[20]Quote from a 2006 post at City-Data.com forum: “Here is what I
understand about the Russians in BrightonBeach... Most of the Russians in BrightonBeach
are ethnically Jewish, but are VERY secular. So they have Russian-Jewish
surnames and most have no clue about Judaism. To make things more complicated a lot of the
Russian Jews living there are mixed Russian-Christian/Russian-Jew, so even
though they might have a Jewish surname, their mother could have been Orthodox
Christian and raised them to be Russian Orthodox. In addition I believe that
there are just a lot of regular Russian-Orthodox Christians who have moved to
the area over the past decade. I used to know a teacher/professor who often
traveled to BrightonBeach and he would
describe the Russians by saying something like "Yeah they are Jewish,
however they're the type of Jew who would tell you that they are Jewish while
eating a ham sandwich."

[30] “Election
2000: Russian Jews as Voters in New York City,” Study Conducted for The American Jewish
Committee by Research Institute for New Americans (RINA), (New York: The American
Jewish Committee, 2001)., p.12.